Forever
by Pen name should be here
Summary: An alternate end to Doomsday finds Rose and the Doctor still together, but will anything change as she still cannot share his forever? Or can she? And what does Bad Wolf have to do with it all? TenRose. First DW fic, R&R please?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I don't own Doctor Who, or any of the characters in this story. I hope you like it, please review and let me know what you think! I know its been done before but...I just couldn't resist. Thanks for reading, please review!

Rose clung to the lever with all her might, her body pulled towards the void by an irresistible force, so much stronger than anything she had experienced before. She was staring into the Doctor's eyes, he looked so desperate as he reached for her, eyes tortured as he watched her grip slip bit by bit from the handle.

Finally, suddenly, her grip gave out and she was flying through the air. She heard the Doctor's tortured scream, and was aware of the light growing dimmer...and she suddenly slammed, feet first, into a very solid object. Her body crumpled on impact, and she hit her head against the wall, almost knocking her out.

"Rose," she heard the Doctor's broken whisper, and moaned, wishing she could go and comfort him. "ROSE?" he cried suddenly, and then he was on his knees beside her, brushing her hair out of her eyes. "Shhh, shhh, love," he whispered when she tried to speak, seemingly not conscious of what he was saying. "You'll be alright, just hold still, understand?"

He ran careful fingers over her skull, finding the knot where it had impacted the wall and frowning slightly. He then felt down her neck, assessing her spinal column, smiling with relief to find it undamaged. He cradled her head carefully in one hand and moved slightly and shifted her body to lie in a more natural pose so he could assess the rest of her injuries. He hated to do it before he knew what was hurt, but she was so crumpled up he didn't have a choice.

Rose gave a startled gasp, almost a scream, at the pain of the movement, and her eyes rolled up in her head, passing out. The Doctor sighed, but knew it was probably for the best if she didn't feel this. She wouldn't have the concussion for long enough for it to hurt that she was unconscious, but he set about assessing the rest of her injuries quickly. Her torso and arms seemed unhurt, although he'd need a scan to confirm that for sure. When he got to her legs, he was amazed that she had been able to remain conscious at all; she had multiple displaced fractures of her tibia and fibula, and he was sure that, if he removed her shoes, he would find her ankles and feet to be in the same condition.

Now knowing everything he could about her injuries, and with nothing he could do to help her where they were, he lifted her carefully in his arms and, pulling out the sonic screwdriver, headed for the TARDIS.

They reached the ship and, pulling Rose's key over her head, he unlocked the door, careful not to jostle his precious burden. Once he was inside and the door was locked behind him, preventing any visitors uninvited or otherwise, he crossed the Console room in quick strides, and found that it now opened straight onto the Infirmary. Sending a quick thanks to the TARDIS, he laid Rose on the couch and set about treating her wounds.

Half an hour later, her bones were whole, her bruises gone, her concussion cleared. She hadn't woken up the entire time, a fact the Doctor was grateful for, and he rested his fingertips on her temples now, needing her to wake up and tell him she was alright.

"Rose," he said firmly, calmly, as his mind pressed on hers, "It's time to wake up now."

She sighed, shifting slightly under his hands, then her eyes fluttered open.

"Hello," he said, a grin spreading across his face as she looked at him, eyes wide with wonder.

"Hello," she replied and, sitting bolt upright, she grabbed him in a tight hug. "You're alright?" she asked quickly, pulling away and glancing up and down at him, concerned.

The Doctor chuckled. That was so like her: multiple leg fractures, a cracked skull and a concussion and she was worrying about him. "I'm fine, Rose. And you're fine now, too. You're lucky, if that hole had closed one second later than it did…"

"I'd be in hell," she said, shuddering slightly.

"Yeah," the Doctor replied, tone thick with relief as he clutched her tightly to him, reminding himself that she was still here. He pulled back slightly, staring into her eyes. He didn't know what made him actually voice the next words, he knew they were truth, but they shouldn't have been said. "I almost lost you…I love you, Rose."

"I love you, my Doctor. And I'm going to give you as long as I can, and then some." The Doctor, hearing her strange tone, pulled back slightly to look into her face. Her eyes were glowing a faint gold, and he stared in horror.

"No, no, no, no, no!" he cried, staring in horror. "Rose, NO!" It had worried him many times that Rose had survived the Vortex unscathed while it had killed his ninth self in a fraction of the time she had held it for, and he had used her frequent injuries as a way of checking up on her, seeing if there was anything hanging on, but he thought it was gone. It was supposed to be gone! "I'm not losing you again!" he swore fiercely, his teeth clenched.

"Doctor?" asked Rose, confused, her eyes once more brown, voice normal.

Ignoring her, he grabbed a scanner, running it over her body, lips moving in silent supplication. "WHAT?" he exclaimed, staring at it like it had gone mad. "That's impossible!" he cried, scowling. "WHAT?"

"_Oh, stop that," _snapped a voice that sounded amazingly like Mary Poppins. _"I did it, alright? It was easy enough. You pulled me out of her and into you, so I just…pulled a bit of her along for the ride, as it were…I knew what was coming, and you love her too much to lose her, that would destroy you, and the universe still needs you."_

"But…what exactly did you do?" demanded the Doctor, eyes wide.

"_I simply tied her life to yours, as it were. She will live for as long as you do. Not just this regeneration, but all of them," _the TARDIS explained. "_Never wither, never age, never die…that is what you were promised, was it not?" _

The Doctor was gasping as he finally grasped what this meant. The pain, the constant pain that he felt knowing one day he was going to lose her was unnecessary.

Rose was gaping at him, having cottoned onto what the TARDIS was talking about. "She did that for me…for us?" she asked, eyes wide.

"_I did, little one. You always were my favourite, you came and picked up the pieces and loved him when he thought no one would, could or should, and you put him back together, and you willingly laid down your life to save his. So thank you, Rose Tyler, and it was the least I could do."_

Rose stared at the Doctor, wide eyed, then launched herself at him, wrapping her arms tight around his neck as his encircled her waist, lifting her off the floor and spinning her around. He set her down again and pulled back to stare into her eyes.

"One thing I don't understand, why didn't we find out about this sooner?" asked Rose, confused.

"_He had to tell you first. I hid it until he did. You needed to hear him say 'I love you' __**before**__ he knew he would have you forever, or you would always wonder if he only loved you because he couldn't lose you. You see?"_ the TARDIS explained gently.

"I get that…oh my god, mum," Rose said suddenly, the events of the day crashing down on her. "I completely forgot…she's gone." Her lips quivered slightly as her eyes watered, and the Doctor wrapped her in a comforting embrace.

"There…there might be a way, not to bring her back mind you, but for you to say a proper goodbye, if that's what you want," he said slowly. "The universe is still sealing itself, there are gaps that haven't closed yet, if we go now…"

"I'd like that," Rose told him, before doing something she had longed to do for a long time but hadn't dared try. She stood on tiptoes and, pulling his head down slightly, kissed him softly, fully, on the lips. "I love you, Doctor."

"And I love you, my Rose," he whispered back. Seconds later he was all business again. "Well, come on, we'd better go if we're going to get to that crack before it closes, hadn't we?"

Rose followed him out to the Console room, her head still spinning with everything that had happened. It felt like her emotions were at war, joy and grief unable to decide who should have pride of place. On one hand, she was going to spend eternity, or as close to it as possible, with the man she loved, who loved her, but on the other hand, she was never going to see her mother again, never going to hold her, smell her hair or eat her terrible cooking.

All of the things she had lost balanced against the things she gained. She had known, since they met Sarah Jane, that the would never, could never, be, and she had forced herself to reconcile with that fact, and to be content with whatever he would give her, but now…now she could give him forever, his forever, and she would, joyfully.

The Doctor, seemingly excited by the challenge, ran to the monitor and started fiddling with the various buttons and knobs. Rose joined him, just standing leaning lightly against his side, taking comfort in his presence as her emotions continued to run riot.

"There it is!" cried the Doctor gleefully. "Now we just need the right power source…and here we have it, a sun about to go into supernova….well, I say about, a mean in the next thousand years or so, won't upset anything if we speed the process up a little," he told her, wrinkling his nose a little as he thought. "Here we go!" he reached around the console and pulled a single handle. "Now, you stand right there and call out with your mind, call for your mum. She'll know where to go."

'Mum…mum,' Rose called over and over in her mind. Moments later, she found herself standing on a beach, facing her mother, who had tears in her eyes, Pete on one side, Mickey on the other.

"Mum," she said, her voice thick with tears.

"You're really here. You…you look like a ghost," Jackie told her.

"She can't see me properly," Rose told the Doctor, who grabbed the sonic screwdriver and pointed it at one of the dials, and Jackie nodded.

"That's better," she said, and stepped forward, trying to hug her daughter, only to have her hand go straight through.

"Sorry, mum, I'm just an image, no touch. The universes are almost completely sealed off, just this last crack left, and we're using the energy of a supernova to send this message, to say good…goodbye," Rose told her, choking over the last word.

"Oh," was all Jackie could manage.

"Still got Pete then?" Rose asked, glancing over at her 'father'.

"Yeah. There's four of us now…me, Pete, Mickey…and the baby," her mum told her, eyes moist.

"You're?" Rose asked, eyes huge and wet with tears.

"Yeah. Nearly three months along now. Took you long enough to get in touch," Jackie told her.

"Not on this side, mum…it was just this morning," Rose told her, eyes tearing up. "We don't have much longer. I love you, mum."

"I love you, sweetheart. You tell that Doctor I said to take care of you, understand?"

"He will, mum, don't worry…we'll be alright, you just take care of yourselves, alright? You've got someone else to worry about now." Just as the sentence finished, she found herself back in the TARDIS, tears running down her cheeks as she sobbed. She would have fallen to her knees but the Doctor caught her and turned to take her to the seat, only to freeze, eyes widening almost comically.

"What?" he gasped, incredulous.

"Uh…"

"What?"

"'ho are you two?"

"But…"

"Where am I?"

"WHAT?"

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS PLACE?"

"WHAT?"

Rose had been clinging to the Doctor, but she turned to see what was going on, and gaped at finding a ferocious looking redhead standing in the console room in a wedding dress.

"What?" she demanded, staring between the bride and the Doctor, thoroughly confused.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Not even one teeny tiny little review? Humph. Little bit hurt by that. Thanks to everyone who added me to their tracking/favorites lists! Runaway Bride, Part 1, right here. Please leave a review and let me know what you think? Thanks! love xx Shezzi

"We're in flight, isn't that impossible?" asked Rose, confused.

"Yes," replied the Doctor, still staring wide-eyed at the bride.

"Tell me where I am. I demand you tell me right now, where am I?" she shrieked.

"Inside the TARDIS," the Doctor replied, still studying her from a safe distance.

"The what?" her face twisted up in a confused expression.

"It's called the TARDIS," Rose told her, getting annoyed.

"That's not even a proper word, you're just saying things," the redhead snapped back.

"It is a proper word actually, it's an acronym," Rose told her, curling her lip at her.

"How did you get in here?" demanded the Doctor, even as he threw Rose a proud look.

"Well, obviously when you kidnapped me," the redhead snapped, furious. "Who was it? Who's paying you? Was it Nerys? Oh god, she's finally gotten me back. This has got Nerys written all over it!"

The Doctor and Rose, trying to make sense of the bride's babble, were still standing, arms around each other, the Doctor rubbing small circles on Rose's back, tears stains still very visible on the blonde's cheeks.

Realising what the redhead was saying, the Doctor shook his head, frowning. "Who the hell is Nerys?"

"Your best friend," the bride snarled, furious.

"Hold on, wait a minute," said the Doctor as he looked her up and down, and Rose realised a second too late what he was going to say, "Why are you dressed like that?"

Rose shook her head at him, rolling her eyes, but the bride's response surprised a bark of empty laughter out of her.

"I was tenpin bowling. Wha'da'ya think, dumbo? I was halfway up the aisle!"

As the bride continued ranting, the Doctor pushed Rose gently onto the jump seat and started working on the console, expression almost desperate as he tried to explain what was going on.

"I've waited all my life for this, and it was just seconds away, and then you, I don't know, you drugged me or something!"

"We haven't done anything!" defended the Doctor, annoyed, while Rose stared in wide eyed fascination at the bride, wondering how much longer she would go on for.

"I'll have the police on you both! Me and my husband…just as soon as he is my husband…we're gonna sue the livin' backside off ya!"

The redhead spotted the doors at that moment, and ran for them, Rose starting to her feet and giving chase, hoping to stop her before she gave herself a heart attack.

"Don't!" she cried as the older woman reached the doors, but it was too late. She had yanked the doors open and was staring, horror struck, at what lay beyond.

"You're in space," said the Doctor gently from behind them. "Outer space. This is my space ship, it's called the TARDIS."

"How'm I breathin'?"

"The TARDIS is protecting us."

"Who are you?" demanded Donna incredulously.

"I'm the Doctor, and this is Rose. You?"

"Donna," replied the bride, tone cold.

"Human?" he asked, looking her up and down.

"Yeah, is that optional?"

"It is for me," he muttered.

"You're an alien?" she asked.

"Yeah," the Doctor replied.

"And you?" she asked, turning to Rose.

"I'm human…mostly, at least," Rose said, thinking about what the TARDIS had said.

Donna looked as though she couldn't decide what to say for a moment, then, "It's freezing with these doors open," she commented.

The Doctor quickly closed the door, then turned away, sharing a puzzled look with Rose before starting off again.

"I don't understand it, and I understand everything! This, this can't happen! There is no way a human being can lock itself onto the TARDIS and transport itself inside!" He grabbed an instrument off his tool belt and started examining her through it, muttering too low and fast for Rose to understand, and just as she was stepping forwards to pull him back, Donna's hand lashed out and slapped him hard across the cheek.

"What was that for?" he demanded.

"Get me to the church!" the redhead shrieked as Rose grabbed her shoulder, spinning her around.

"You back off," the younger woman snarled, glaring at the redhead. "I get that you're upset, you're missing your wedding, I understand, but at least you can reschedule; there'll always be another time you can do it. Not everyone gets that chance; we don't all get a do-over. I just said goodbye to my _mother_ for the last time, and I will never see her again. I don't get the luxury of redoing that, I've lost her. So, shut up!" Tears gathered in her eyes once more as she stood between the Time Lord and the bride, glaring.

The Doctor wrapped an arm around Rose, turning her into his shoulder and stroking her hair. "Like visiting your mother, this is," he told her.

Donna couldn't seem to decide how to respond to Rose's outburst, and was startled by the wet chuckle the Doctor's statement surprised out of the blonde.

"We'll get you home," the Doctor told her, and she nodded slowly. "Pass me that?" he requested, nodding to the purple hoodie hanging over the railing. Donna picked it up and handed it to him, and he wrapped it around Rose's shoulders. "We've had a very long day," he explained softly as his hand continued to play calmingly with Rose's hair. "Rose, love, come and sit down," he said softly, leading Rose to the pilot's seat, grabbing his own coat off the back of it and wrapping it around her in an effort to still her shivers.

Once she was settled, his coat pulled tight around her as she watched him, he turned back to Donna. "Where is this wedding, then?" he asked.

"St Mary's, Chiswick," she replied, sounding somewhat subdued.

"Right, then!" he was moving around the console, and Rose quickly grabbed hold of the seat. Seeing her, Donna took a firm grip on the railing, just as the Doctor hit the last button and the TARDIS lurched violently one way, then another, before settling with a shuddering thud. "Here we are," he said, and Donna ran for the doors, the Doctor and Rose following, Rose leaving the Doctor's overcoat on the chair, but shrugging her hoodie on.

"I said St Mary's. What sort of Martian are you? Where's this?" demanded Donna, having seemingly recovered from her brief bout of Rose induced politeness.

"Something's wrong with her," the Doctor murmured, stroking the wood by the door. "It's like she's recalibrating. She's digesting. What is it? What have you eaten, what's wrong?" Rose was watching him, concerned, as he pulled out his stethoscope and held it against the central column.

"Donna!" he called loudly. "You've really gotta think, is there anything that might have caused this? Anything you might have done? Any sort of alien contact? Cause I can't let you go wandering off, what if you're dangerous?" he started rattling off possible causes, but Rose was distracted when she realised what Donna was doing: examining the outside of the TARDIS.

She quickly stepped out, just as Donna was coming back to look in the door again. "Just…stay calm," she told the redhead, who glared furiously at her.

"I'm goin'," Donna declared, turning and hurrying away.

"DONNA!" shouted the Doctor from inside. He ran out, coming level with her and Rose, and walked with them, trying to convince the stubborn, scared bride. "Donna."

"Leave me alone, I just wanna get married," she told him, sounding as scared as they had heard her thus far.

"Come back to the TARDIS," he said gently, persuasively.

"No way, that box is too weird," she replied.

"It's just bigger on the inside, I know that's kind of freaky, but she's not dangerous or anything," Rose said, trying to comfort the bride.

"Oh, well, that's good to know," Donna snapped, looking down at her watch. "Ten past three, I'm gonna miss it!"

"Here," said Rose, pulling out her phone. "Call them, let them know where you are."

About to berate the blonde for not bringing this up earlier, Donna checked herself, remembering that the younger woman had had other things on her mind. "Thanks," she said instead, and started dialling. "Mum, get off the phone! Look, I don't know where I am exactly, somewhere in London, I'm gonna get a taxi, I'll be back there as soon as I can." She hung up the phone and handed it back to Rose.

"TAXI!" Donna yelled, running towards the road and waving at a passing cab, but the driver ignored her. "He 'ad his light on!"

"There's another one!" cried Rose, running further down the road and waving to get the driver's attention. "TAXI!" all three of them called, Donna actually going into the road in an effort to make him stop, but he didn't.

After several more went by without stopping, the Doctor stopped, frowning. "None of them are stopping. Do you have this effect on everyone?"

"They think I'm in fancy dress," Donna said, sounding disgusted.

Another taxi drove past, the driver shouting at the window at them, "Lay off the sauce, darlin'!"

"They think I'm drunk!"

"You're fooling no one, mate," yelled two guys in a car on the other side of the street, pointing at Donna.

"They think I'm in drag!" she exclaimed, horrified. The Doctor looked her up and down and chose to refrain from commenting.

Rose, meanwhile, was glancing around the street. "It's Christmas," she commented, surprised. "Why are you getting married on Christmas, Donna?"

"I hate Christmas," she explained. "Honeymoon in Morocco, sunshine, lovely."

"Okay, that makes sense," Rose agreed. "Now we just need to get a taxi to actually stop, since you won't get into the most convenient form of transport available."

Donna ignored her comment and focused on attempting to flag down a cab.

"Hold on, hold on," said the Doctor, raising a hand to his mouth. Rose, knowing what was coming, flinched away slightly as he whistled shrilly, Donna clapping her hands to her ears.

Immediately, a taxi pulled up beside them, and all three piled in. "St Mary's in Chiswick," Donna directed the driver. "It's an emergency, I'm getting married. Just hurry up!"

"That'll cost you, sweetheart. Double rates today," the driver told her, glancing in the mirror.

"Oh my god," gasped Donna, "'ave you got any money?" she asked the Doctor, who looked startled.

"Ummm…no, haven't you?" he replied.

"I'm in my wedding dress, I don't exactly have pockets!" Donna cried, furious.

Before it could go any further, or the driver kicked them out, Rose intervened. "It's alright, I've got cash," she said. "Only way I'll ever get chips, at least on Earth, he's such a cheap date," she smiled teasingly at the Doctor, who grinned back, pleased with the lift in her mood. He hadn't been planning on bringing her back to Earth just yet, wanting to put some distance between her and the memories, but she seemed to be coping well, at least while she had something else to focus on.

"Now, what are you going to tell them all?" Rose asked Donna, thinking quickly. "You don't want to be blurting out just anything."

Donna nodded and started thinking. The Doctor wrapped one arm around Rose and sat, smiling slightly at her as he thought, occasionally asking her a question to see if it sparked any ideas about what was going on.

The taxi deposited them outside the church, and Rose forked over the hefty fee as Donna got out into the crowd of wedding goers now milling around outside, having finally been kicked out by the vicar to make way for the next wedding.. When they saw Donna, they all descended, demanding to know what had happened.

"I don't know!" she wailed, eyes watering slightly, "One minute I was here, the next I wasn't, and these two helped me to get back!" she burst into great heaving sobs, and Lance grabbed her in a huge hug, drawing sighs from the guests. She threw a subtle wink to Rose and the Doctor over her fiancé's shoulder.

"Well, we've got a party still," offered her mother. "It's all payed for, would be a shame to waste it."

"Yeah, let's go," she agreed, voice still slightly 'tearful'.

Rose and the Doctor piled into one of the cars and tagged along, discussing possible causes of the events of the day in whispers.

"Is there something tha' could have caused her to be sucked into the TARDIS? Something specific that she could've come in contact with?"

"Nothing I can think of. Nothing that exists anymore, anyway..." the Doctor trailed off, deep in thought.

Rose's eyes wandered to the window, and she smiled sadly at what she saw. "I guess the insurance paid out on Henriks."

"Yeah," agreed the Doctor, eyeing the posters everywhere advertising the big Christmas sale.

"I love you," Rose said, pulling his head down slightly and kissing him gently on the lips. "I'm still getting used to actually being able to say that."

"Me too...on both counts." They grinned at each other as the car came to a stop, piling out. "Let's see what we can find out then," the Doctor said with a grin, helping Rose out of the car. "And this time, you don't even have to pretend to be the hired help," he commented, and she laughed soflty, remembering the last time they had attended a party. Her smile fell as she remembered the events surrounding it, the first time she and the Doctor had visited the parallel world.

"Come on," she said, determined not to be gloomy. "Lets go."

They followed the group into the reception centre and took up residence near the bar, talking to the guests as they came up about what they'd seen. Finally, someone suggested that if they were so interested, they should see for themselves, and directed them to the cameraman.

"Send it to the 'You've been framed', they said. More like the news, I said. Here you go," he rewound the tape and turned the view finder so they could watch. They saw Donna walking down the aisle, then she started to glow gold and vanished with a scream.

"What...that's impossible, could you play that again?"the cameraman nodded and rewound it, before playing it again. "That's huon energy!" exclaimed the Doctor, shocked.

"Huon, as in ancient Celtic god, leader of the Wild Hunt?" asked Rose, surprised.

"Same name, totally different thing, good thinking though," explained the Doctor quickly. "Huon energy is the oldest energy in the universe, literally doesn't exist anymore, my people unravelled the atomic structure; the only place you'll find a huon particle these days is a remnant in the heart of the TARDIS. Of course!" he exlaimed, excited. "That's what pulled her in, the particle in the TARDIS attracting the others....but how did the others get there in the first place?"

"How could they get inside her?" asked Rose practically, trying to help him come up with ideas.

"She would have had to ingest it," the Doctor said, frowning again. The song suddenly changed, and the Doctor grinned, grabbing Rose's hand and pulling her out onto the dance floor. Rose laughed as the strains of Glenn Miller's 'Moonlight Serenade' swept through the room, the Doctor whirling her out onto the dance floor.

After a few minutes of swing dancing, Rose wrapped her arms around his neck as the Doctor's hands settled on her waist, her head tucked under his chin.

"I'm sorry, Rose," he said softly, one hand travelling up her back to sit between her shoulders. "I didn't want us to get back into it this fast."

"It's alright, I mean, at least we're busy," she replied, yawning hugely.

"You're tired," he said simply, pulling her more firmly against himself.

"Long day," Rose replied, snuggling closer to his chest.

"Longer than twenty four hours long," the Doctor agreed. Rose turned slightly in the circle of his arms, looking out the window, and gasped.

"Doctor," she said, very slowly and calmly, feeling as though she had used up her excitement for the day, "look out the window, I think we have company."

TBC!!!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hey guys, sorry it took so long to update, gotta do what pays the bills too, I guess. Really really long to make up for it! Hope you like it, please review and let me know what you think! it's unbeta'd, so any mistakes are ones I have missed and would appreciate having pointed out to me! love xx Shezzi

The Doctor, a feeling of dread growing in the pit of his stomach, turned to see where Rose was looking.

"Hello," he said, surprised, as he saw the robot Santas. "What are they doing here then?"

"Doctor," said Rose again, this time with a sense of urgency in her words. "Look!" He turned and saw what she was pointing at: four large Christmas trees, one in each corner of the room.

"Everyone, get away from the trees!" the Doctor shouted, even as Rose released him and ran over to herd the children away, Donna joining her without question even as the other guests jeered at them.

"But…what're Christmas trees gonna do?" demanded Donna, confused even as she trustingly assisted them.

"They kill," replied the Doctor and Rose together, Rose's eyes filled with pain. This was hitting too close to home for her, and she was just too tired to deal with all of the reminders.

Then, the baubles on the trees started to lift away. The guests ooh'd and aah'd at the beautiful display, the Doctor and Rose attempting to keep themselves between the guests and the attack, and then the first one exploded, followed by another and another.

The result was instant pandemonium, guests screaming, grabbing children and trying to find cover or run away all at once. Rose, seeing a child still standing, staring transfixed at the glowing bauble less than a meter away from it, leapt into action, grabbing the little girl and whirling, putting her own body in the way as she looked for a place to go. She jumped, even as the bauble exploded, behind a table, carefully sheltering the child, who was sobbing now, terrified.

"It's alright," she soothed gently, "I've got you. You'll be alright."

The little girl suddenly saw someone over Rose's shoulder, and shrieked loudly, "MUMMY!"

Turning, Rose saw the woman hiding behind another table, but kept her grip on the girl, not allowing her to leave their tenuous shelter.

She glanced around then, looking for the Doctor, and realised that the Santas were now entering the room. She clutched the little girl, who was struggling to go to her mother, closer, and looked for the Doctor. He was crouched by the sound system, and Rose frowned slightly, getting an inkling of what he was planning to try.

"OI!" he yelled suddenly. "SANTA! Word of advice. If you're gonna attack a man with a sonic screwdriver…don't let him near the sound system." So saying, he jammed the device into one of the inputs on the speakers and pressed the button.

The noise and the pain Rose felt was indescribable. It felt as though her head was going to explode, but she didn't press her hands to her own ears, instead covering those of the little girl she sheltered. She gritted her teeth and waited, watching as the Santas screeched, convulsing, then fell to pieces, and the noise stopped.

She released the little girl, who ran to her mother, and stood slowly, making her way over to the Doctor.

"You okay?" he asked, putting his hands on her shoulders, looking her up and down carefully.

"Fine, bit of a headache though," she admitted slowly. She turned to look at the Santas, kicking one with the toe of her shoe. "So, what are they doing here?" she asked, determinedly hiding the pain that the reminder of her last Christmas was causing.

"I could ask the same thing," said Donna from behind them.

"Remote control for the Christmas trees," commented the Doctor as he picked it up, turning it over in his hands, "but there's a secondary remote control, see?" he picked up a robot head and showed Donna and Rose the flashing light. "Not just scavengers anymore," he said with a significant glance at Rose. "Someone's taken possession."

"But why?" demanded Donna.

"To get you. And they wanted you alive, look around. They could easily have killed every single person here, but other than a few minor injuries, everyone's fine." As he spoke, he was picking things up and tucking them into his pockets. "Where do you work, Donna?" he asked suddenly, trying to something out.

"I'm a secretary at H C Clements," she replied, confused. "Why?"

"Because however this started, it must have started somewhere, and since I doubt you came into contact with Huon particles in Chiswick, work seems to be the next best bet. What do H C Clements do?"

"Posh locksmiths, really. Key codes and the like," Donna replied.

"Keys…" said the Doctor, slowly.

"TI's where I met Lance," said Donna, expression suddenly dreamy. "I was temping, and everyone was so posh, I thought I'd never fit in, and he made me coffee! That's how it all started, me and him..one cup of coffee. And he made me one every day, ever since." She smiled reminiscently.

"Rose, let me see your mobile," said the Doctor, holding out a hand. Rose passed it over without a word, wondering what was going on in his head. She moved around, leaning against his side to see what he was doing, and he absently wrapped an arm around her shoulders as he used the sonic screwdriver and the phone to run a search. When Rose saw the results, her head started to shake automatically.

"No," she said, as though by denying it she could make it untrue. "No, it can't be," she insisted, staring at the tiny screen that read: HC Clements – Sole Proprieter: TORCHWOOD.

"I'm sorry, Rose," the Doctor said, turning and wrapping both arms tightly around her. "I'm so sorry."

"What is it?" demanded Donna, concerned.

'H C Clements is owned by the Torchwood Institute," said Rose, voice completely emotionless. "They were the ones who caused the Battle of Canary Wharf, the battle where I lost my mum and my best friend." She shook her head slightly and looked up, eyes bright with assumed excitement. "So, what now?"

The Doctor frowned slightly at her attitude, but left it alone. "We need to get there," he sais slowly, glancing around as paramedics came into the room and started carting off the wounded. "Donna, do you think Lance could give us a lift?"

"Sure," replied Donna, and called him over quickly.

Five minutes later found them in a car, Rose almost asleep against the Doctor in the back seat as the Time Lord sat, playing gently with her hair, humming softly as he felt her relax against him. While the goings on had been helping her to cope with being back on Earth so soon, all the reminders of her last Christmas were too much for her, and with the mention of Torchwood on top of it all…she was shutting down to cope, and he was worried. He wanted nothing more than to get her into the TARDIS and whisk her away, but they had to figure out what was going on and stop it first.

They pulled up to the corporate office building, and climbed out of the car, the Doctor keeping Rose close after she stumbled over the pavement, her exhaustion really starting to hit. They went up to the floor where Donna worked and the Doctor, after pushing Rose gently into a chair, had hacked into the computer system and was studying the plans while talking quickly with Lance.

Finally, he brought up a map and Rose, who had found another energy reserve, was looking over his shoulder at it. She frowned, confused. "Wasn't there a button in the lift marked lower basement?" she asked, and the Doctor nodded, grinning at her.

"Yes, there was…so why isn't it on the plans?" he grabbed her hand and they ran to the elevator, Donna and Lance following behind them.

"Are you telling me that this building has a secret floor?" demanded Lance, confusion written all over his face.

"No, I'm showing you that this building has a secret floor," he told them, moving to press the button.

"But…you need a key," objected Donna, pointing.

"I don't," replied the Doctor, pointing the sonic screwdriver at the button. "Thanks for the help, we can take it from here."

"No chance, you two are the only ones keeping me alive, you're not leaving me behind," replied Donna, following them into the elevator. "Lance?"

"Maybe I should go and get the police…" he said slowly, glancing around, clearly wanting to be anywhere but in that lift.

"Inside!" snapped Donna, and Lance snapped to obey.

"To honour and obey," muttered the Doctor, earning himself an elbow in the ribs from Rose, even as Lance got one from Donna for his response of 'You're telling me, mate!'

They exited into a damp tunnel with the hated Torchwood symbol, a T designed from hexagons, which Rose spat at, not even trying to control her contempt.

"So, I'm thinking that after the Battle, when Torchwood went under, someone else stepped in and took control of this project, whatever it is." He glanced up and down the corridor, then his face lit up. "Oh look, transport!"

There were only three of the two wheeled personnel transporters, so Rose and the Doctor shared, Rose standing in front of him, his arm around her waist as they drove along the corridor.

They stopped beside a door that read 'Authorised Personnel Only' and the Doctor jumped down, followed by the others. The Doctor opened the door with a great squeaking on the part of the handle and much grunting and panting on the part of the Doctor.

He stepped into the small, red brick room beyond, which had a ladder set into the wall but was otherwise unremarkable. "Wait here. I just need to get my bearings. Don't do anything!" he looked pointedly at Rose as he said this, and she smiled at him, flapping a hand. "Don't wander off," he repeated, his tone pleading.

"You better come back, martian man," said Donna, sounding slightly desperate. "Wait, what am I talking about…she's here, of course you'll come back." With that, she waved him off quite happily.

"Donna, have you thought about this? Properly? I mean, this is serious! What the hell are we gonna do?" demanded Lance, his voice rising in panic.

"Oh, I thought July," replied Donna, sounding pleased with herself. Rose suppressed a snort as she glanced up and down the tunnel, waiting for the Doctor to finish.

Moments later, he dropped back down, forgoing the ladder for the last several feet. "Thames flood barrier!" he proclaimed proudly. "Right on top of us. Torchwood snuck in and built this place underneath."

"What, there's like a secret base hidden underneath a major London landmark?" demanded Donna.

"Just like Canary Wharf," said Rose before the Doctor could say anything else. "That whole place was Torchwood, before the Cybermen. Of course, for us, that was this morning…give or take a bit, it's hard to keep track."

They continued down the corridor on foot, heading towards a pair of doors surrounded by an odd green light. Going through them, they found themselves in an odd laboratory filled with glass tubes of liquid, bubbles flowing through them.

"Look at this," said the Doctor, eyes widening as he pulled out his glasses and slipped them on. "Stunning!"

"What does it do?" asked Donna, confused.

"Particle extrusion," said the Doctor slowly.

"They're creating Huon particles?" asked Rose, making the connection with what he had told her earlier.

"That's right. Cos, as I told you, Rose, my people got rid of Huons, they unravelled the atomic structure."

"Your people? Who are they? What company do you represent?" asked Lance.

Rose looked at him like he was an idiot, while the Doctor, who was still moving quickly around the laboratory examining one piece of equipment after another, replied, "Oh, I'm a freelancer. But this lot, they've been rebuilding them. Using the river! Extruding them in a flat hydrogen base so you've the end result: Huon particles in liquid form." He held up a small container partially full of liquid, an odd dial on the top, with an almost reverent expression on his face.

Donna walked over, staring at it. "And that's what's inside me?" she asked, scared.

In answer, the Doctor turned the dial, and the liquid in the vial began to glow. At the same time, so did Donna, a pulsing gold flowing up from inside of her to cover her entirely.

"Oh my god!" cried the redhead, staring at herself in horror even as the Doctor returned the particles to their inert state.

"Genius," said the Doctor. "Because the particles are inert, they need something living to catalyse inside and that's you. Saturate the body and then…" he trailed off momentarily, eyes going wide, and then, "HAH! The wedding!" he exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air. "You're getting married, that's it! Best day of your life, walking down the aisle…oh, your body's a battleground! There's a chemical war going on inside!"

Before he could get any further, or Donna could slap him again, Rose grabbed his arm. "Calm down," she hissed. "Not everyone is enjoying this as much as you."

"Doctor…" said Donna slowly. "Just tell me. These particles, are they dangerous? Am I safe?"

"Yes," he said, his tone making it obvious he was stretching the truth.

"Doctor. If your lot got rid of Huon particles, why did they do that?" she asked him, sounding scared.

"Because they were deadly," he said gently, watching her reaction.

"Oh my god!"

"I'll sort it out, Donna. Whatever they did to you I'll reverse it, I promise you. I'm not going to lose you," he assured her, his tone as confident and upbeat as he could make it.

"Oh, she is long since lost," hissed a voice that seemed to come from all around them. The wall to one side of the room, which turned out to be a door, started to slowly roll up into the ceiling. "I have waited so long," said the voice, a decidedly female voice, "hiding at the edge of the universe, until the secret heart was uncovered and called out to waken!"

They could now see clearly what was on the other side of the door; a cavernous room with a circular hole in the middle of the floor. At the same time, the robots, now dressed in plain black cloaks with their bronze faces uncovered, turned and aimed weapons at the three of them, Lance having slipped away without anyone noticing.

"Someone's been digging," commented the Doctor, sounding impressed. "Oh, very Torchwood. Drilled by laser? How far down does it go?" he asked as he moved to look down, Rose coming behind him while Donna hung back slightly, nervous.

"Down and down, all the way to the centre of the Earth," hissed the voice.

"Really? Seriously, what for?" asked the Doctor, frowning slightly.

"Dinosaurs!" suggested Donna suddenly, startling both the Doctor and Rose.

"What? What are you talking about, dinosaurs?" demanded the Doctor, confused.

"That film…under the earth, with dinosaurs," Donna told them. "Trying to help!" she added, sourly.

"Really not," Rose replied, frowning thoughtfully as she glanced down the hole herself.

"Such a sweet couple you make with my bride," hissed the voice.

"Only a mad man talks to thin air," said the Doctor, annoyed.

"Trust me, you don't want to make him mad," Rose said, wrapping an arm around the Doctor's waist.

"Where are you?" demanded the Doctor, wrapping an arm around Rose's shoulders. He could almost feel the exhaustion rolling off her, and he held her slightly tighter, not wanting her to fall.

"High in the sky," hissed the voice. "Floating so high on Christmas night."

"I didn't come all this way to talk on the intercom!" yelled the Doctor. "Come on, let's have a look at you!"

"Who are you with such demands?" shot back the voice sourly.

"Prepare your best medicines then, Doctor man, for you will be sick at heart."

The creature that had been speaking suddenly appeared on the far side of the chamber, on a raised platform. She looked like a cross between a human, a spider and a scorpion, and all Rose could think was that she was damn ugly.

"Racnoss!" exclaimed the Doctor, shocked. "That's impossible, you're one of the Racnoss!"

"Empress of the Racnoss," corrected the creature, rearing up on her two sets of rear legs.

"If you're the Empress, where's the rest of the Racnoss? Or…are you the only one?"

"Such a sharp mind," hissed the Empress.

"That's it, the last of your kind. The Racnoss come from the dark times, billions of years ago, billions! They were carnivores, omnivores, they devoured entire planets," the Doctor explained quickly to the Doctor and Rose.

"Racnoss are born starving. Is that our fault?" demanded the Empress.

"They eat people?" asked Donna, horrified.

"Does that answer your question?" asked Rose, pointing to the web she had noticed covering the roof above the Empress, where a pair of feet in black and white shoes poked through.

"My Christmas dinner," chuckled the Empress.

"You shouldn't even exist!" cried the Doctor, disgusted. "Way back in history, the fledgling empires went to war against the Racnoss. They were wiped out!" he yelled the last statement at the Empress.

"Except for me," replied the Empress gloatingly.

They saw Lance slip into the room, and Rose frowned slightly, things starting to come together in her mind. Donna, on the other hand, saw the axe her fiancé held in his hand, and stepped forward to distract the Racnoss.

"But that's what I've got inside of me, that Huon energy thing," Donna said, trying to distract the Empress, who started to glance over her shoulder. "Oi, look at me, lady, I'm talking!" she yelled. "Where do I fit in? How come I get all stacked up with these Huon particles? Look at me, you! Look me in the eye and tell me!"

"The bride is so feisty," mocked the empress, laughing her odd laugh.

"Yes, I am," replied Donna, furious. "And I don't know what you are, you big…thing, but a spider's just a spider, and an axe is an axe. Now, DO IT!" she screamed at Lance, who moved as though to strike the Empress, who turned to look at him, then stopped and, looking straight at Donna, started to laugh, the axe falling to his side.

"That was a good one," he told the Empress, who chuckled with him. "Your face!"

"Lance is funny," the Empress informed them, smiling cruelly.

"What?" demanded Donna.

"I'm sorry," said the Doctor softly.

"Sorry for what? Lance, don't be so stupid, GET HER!"

"God, she's thick!" cried Lance, disgusted. "Months I've had to put up with her, a woman who can't even point to Germany on a map."

"I don't understand," said Donna softly, confusion written all over her features.

"How did you meet him?" the Doctor asked gently, even as Rose wrapped a gentle arm around the red head's shoulders, already seeing where this was going.

"In the office," Donna replied, her tone hurt and confused.

"He made you coffee," the Doctor reminded her.

"Wha'?" demanded Donna, tone rising in incredulity and anger.

"Every day, I made you coffee," Lance said.

"You had to be dosed with liquid particles over six months," the Doctor explained gently.

"He was poisoning me," Donna realised, shocked.

"It was all there in the job title, the head of Human Resources," the Doctor said mockingly.

"This time, it's personnel," Lance gibed back, his expression made ugly by the nasty twist of his lip.

"But…we were getting married," said Donna, still confused.

"Oh, well, I couldn't risk you running off! I had to say yes," Lance replied. "And there I was, stuck with a woman who thinks the height of excitement is the new flavour pringle!" He was about to continue in his diatribe, but Rose interrupted.

"Alright, I've had about enough of you!" she yelled. "You're evil, we get it, you don't need to keep going on about it!"

"I deserve a medal for putting up with her," Lance declared, glaring at the blonde who dared to speak up against him.

"Oh, is that what she's promised you, the Empress of the Racnoss?" asked the Doctor. "What are you, her consort?"

"It's better than a night with her," Lance said, calmly, as though simply stating a fact.

"But I love you," Donna objected.

"That's what made it easy. The big picture? What's the point of it all if the human race is nothing? That's what the Empress can give me! The chance to go out there, to see it, the size of it all. I think you understand that, don't you, Doctor, Rose?"

"Who is this little physician and his pale flower girl?" asked the Empress, curious.

"She said Martian," Lance replied, shrugging slightly.

"Oh, we're sort of…homeless," the Doctor said, not wanting to draw too much attention to Rose and so including her in his statement. "But the point is, what's down here? The Racnoss are extinct, what's going to help you 4,000 miles down? That's just the molten core of the Earth, isn't it?" he asked, confused.

"I think he wants us to talk," Lance said, his expression almost pitying.

"I think so too," said the Empress, chuckling.

"Well tough. All we need is Donna," said Lance, grinning.

"Kill this chattering little Doctor man, and his flower girl!" ordered the Empress.

"No, don't you hurt them!" cried Donna, trying to stand in front of both the Doctor and Rose.

"No, it's alright," the Doctor tried to reassure her, trying to tuck both of them behind his body instead.

"No, I won't let 'em," Donna insisted, terrified.

"At arms!" shrieked the Empress, and the black robed robots swivelled to aim at the Doctor

"Ah, now, except," said the Doctor, sounding almost desperate.

"Take aim!"

"Yeah, well, I just want to point out the obvious," he started, holding up both hands.

"They won't hit the bride. They're such very good shots," the Empress told him, smiling proudly.

"Just hold on, just a tick, just a tiny little…just a tick," the Doctor said quickly. "If you think about it, the particles activated inside of Donna and drew her inside my spaceship," as he spoke, the Doctor moved closer to Donna and Rose, puling them into a tight grouping. "So, reverse it…and the spaceship comes to her." He pulled the small vial he had been demonstrating the Huon particles with earlier out of his pocket and activated it, the TARDIS immediately starting to materialise around the three of them. They heard the Empress shrieking, and then they were gone.

Rose led Donna over to the jump seat, the two women slumping tiredly down, Rose wrapping a comforting arm around Donna's shoulders. "Where are we going?" Rose asked the Doctor, blinking exhaustedly at him.

"Back further than I've ever been," he replied, excitement lighting his gaze. "We need to find out what the Empress of the Racnoss is digging up. If something's buried at the planet's core then it must have been there since the beginning, and that's just brilliant. I've always wanted to see this."

Donna gave a soft sob into Rose's shoulder, and the younger woman wrapped both arms around the red head, stroking her hair and murmuring gentle nonsense.

"You two want to see?" asked the Doctor gently, and Donna shrugged, while Rose nodded with more enthusiasm. The Doctor adjusted the scanner, then frowned. "Oh, my scanner's a bit small, maybe Donna's way's best. He led the way down to the doors. "No human's ever seen this, you two will be the first," he told them, taking the opportunity to wrap an arm around Rose, who looked almost fit to faint from exhaustion.

"Welcome to the creation of the Earth," he said as he opened the doors one handed. "No solar system yet," he said, voice soft and breathy with wonder. "Only dust and rocks and gas. That's the sun, over there, brand new! Just beginning to burn."

"Where's the Earth?" asked Donna, confused.

"All around us, in the dust," the Doctor told her.

"Puts the wedding in perspective," Donna said bitterly. "Lance was right, we're just…tiny!"

"No, but that's what you do," the Doctor told her gently. "The human race, make sense out of chaos, marking it out, with weddings and Christmas and calendars. This process is beautiful, but only if it's being observed."

"So, I came out of all this?" asked Donna, staring around in amazement. A large rock floated by, slowly turning end over end. "I think that's the Isle of Wight," commented Donna, and the Doctor and Rose both chuckled.

"Sooner or later gravity happens, yeah?" asked Rose. "I remember studying this; a bigger rock starts to draw in the smaller ones?"

"That's right, and then the gases and everything all pile in together until you have…"

"Earth!" gasped Donna, amazed.

"The question is, what was that first rock?" he asked, looking out across the debris field. Just then, from behind a gas cloud, appeared a large star shaped ship that appeared to be made out of spider web. "The Racnoss!" the Doctor breathed, staring.

After a moment, the Doctor released Rose and ran up the ramp, heading for the console, where he started to spin a control. "The Racnoss are hiding from the war! What's it doing?"

"Just what we were talking about," replied Rose softly, staring out in wonder as the Racnoss ship began to spin, drawing in the debris and slowly forming an orb.

"Oh, they didn't just bury something at the centre of the Earth," exclaimed the Doctor, eyes wide. "They became the centre of the Earth!"

The TARDIS shook violently, causing the three of them to catch themselves awkwardly on the console.

"What's happening?" demanded Donna, still clinging on for dear life as Rose and the Doctor managed to find their feet somewhat and start to move around.

"They're reversing what you did to get the TARDIS to us, yeah?" asked Rose, and the Doctor nodded.

"Pulling us back," he replied.

"Well, don't you have a handbrake or something like that?" demanded Donna, sounding terrified.

"Not quite…but I should be able to give us a little nudge," he said. "Rose, can you grab the extrapolator?" he pointed with one hand and she made her way as fast as possible around the console and grabbed the unwieldy thing, with was now half covered in TARDIS corral and handed in over as the Doctor pulled wires out of the console and, as soon as it was in his hands, started connecting them. He switched several dials, then grabbed the mallet and slammed it down. "There we go!" he cried as the TARDIS settled with a thump, seeming to jerk sharply sideways just before it landed.

They ran for the door, the Doctor and Rose looking excited while Donna simply looked rather nervous. They emerged back into the dimly lit corridor they had been in earlier, and the Doctor led the way towards a hatch similar to the one he had gone out of earlier, and started working on unlocking it while Rose and Donna stood behind him, Rose tuning the two of them out, too tired to try and understand the conversation. She was just glancing down the corridor when something crashed down on her head and her vision grew dark.

DWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDW

Rose woke slowly, feeling as though she was swimming through molasses as she moved towards the light. She opened her eyes to find herself once more in the infirmary, the Doctor and Donna sitting beside her. Donna's eyes were red and her face tear stained, and they were both drenched, the Doctor holding Rose's hand tightly in his own, his thumb brushing lightly over her knuckles.

"Doctor," she whispered, smiling, and he grinned down at her.

"Really, Rose, I would have thought you'd have had enough with concussions and being knocked out for a while," he teased her gently, and she laughed softly.

"What happened? With the Racnoss?" she asked, worried.

"It's fine, Rose. All sorted," the Doctor promised, now brushing a kiss against her fingertips. "The Empress drained the Huon particles from Donna and Lance, then fed Lance to her children, I rescued Donna, gave the Empress one last chance, then drowned her children and she got blown up with her ship…oh, and I may have accidentally drained the Thames."

He grinned endearingly at her, and she laughed at him as she pushed her self up into a sitting position, her head spinning slightly at the change. Once she was settled, she reached out and pulled Donna into a hug, rubbing the other woman's back comfortingly. Donna returned the hug for a few moments, then pulled away. "We should probably get you home, your family must be frantic," Rose said, and the Doctor nodded.

"Yeah, they probably are at that," Donna admitted. Rose pushed herself off the couch, the Doctor catching her forearms when she wavered slightly before the world fully righted itself, then they made their way to the console room.

"Address?" asked the Doctor, already setting several switches to take them to a point a couple of hours in the past. When Donna had provided the exact address, he fed it into the console and, with some gentle stroking managed to persuade the TARDIS to get them exactly where he wanted.

"Thank you both," Donna said, giving Rose a last hug. "You keep your chin up, yeah?" she told the blond, who nodded. "And you take care of her," Donna ordered the Doctor. "You two sure you won't come in for Christmas dinner? Mum always makes enough for twenty," she offered persuasively.

"No, thank you," Rose said, shaking her head. It was just too soon, and Donna nodded understandingly, even as the Doctor wrapped an arm around Rose and drew her back into the TARDIS, both waving their final farewells. A few seconds later, the Doctor opened the door again. "So, Donna, you hate Christmas, yes? Even…if it snows?" he pulled a switch inside the door, and a burst of light shot up from the top of the TARDIS, exploding in the atmosphere and coming down as beautiful, dainty snowflakes. The Doctor winked at the redhead, then pulled his head back inside and, moments later, the TARDIS disappeared.

The Doctor, once they were safely in the Vortex, turned to look at Rose where she was slumped on the jump seat. "And as for you, Miss Tyler, to bed you go," he ordered, lifting her to her feet and guiding her stumbling steps down the hall, the adrenaline that had been keeping her going finally fading. "You haven't slept in…far too long, unless you count the total of forty seven minutes and twenty five seconds you were knocked out for," he told her as he led her into her bedroom. He sat her down on the edge of her bed and quickly retrieved some sleepwear for her, and, when her fingers fumbled with the buttons and zips on her clothes, he gently helped her to change.

As he pulled the blankets up around her, she caught his wrist in a tight grip, eyes suddenly alert as she stared into his. "Stay?" she asked softly, and he smiled gently before removing everything except his t-shirt, boxers and socks, and slipped into bed beside her. She immediately curled into his chest, his arms wrapping around her automatically, and the beating of his hearts soothed her into sleep.

Soon, lulled by her warmth and scent, the Doctor found himself dropping off, and he allowed his eyelids to lower, pressing one last gentle kiss to Rose's forehead before dropping off.


	4. Chapter 4

The Doctor lay by Rose, his arms still wrapped around her as he watched her sleep. Unlike him, she required a significant amount of rest to pay off the sleep debt she had created in the last few days. That said, she had only had about four hours so far. He had woken the first time she started having a nightmare, and had stayed awake to soothe her each time the monsters disturbed her sleep, with caresses, soft words and even gentle singing. He had managed to keep her asleep so far, and he found that when she wasn't having nightmares she talked quietly, and it was quite amusing.

So he lay, stroked her hair and listened to her soft, funny, one-sided conversations, and when she cried for her mother, or about the monsters that were killing him, or her mother, or Mickey, or the world in general. He was starting to get worried when she finally stirred ten hours later, eyes opening slowly and smiled sleepily at him, snuggling slightly closer as she gave him a hug before pulling away and rolling out of bed, heading for the bathroom.

The Doctor climbed out of the bed and quickly dressed, planning to head back to his own room for a shower and a change after breakfast. While waiting for Rose, he started picking up the few clothes that were lying around on the floor, putting them neatly away.

Pausing after picking up the jacket he remembered Rose wearing to Papulia, the planet where they had watched the 'flying stingrays', as she called them, he heard a soft sound in the bathroom. Frowning slightly, he stepped closer to the door, his head bent to listen. A second later, the jacket dropped through his fingers and he was at the door, one hand on the knob. "Rose?" he called softly, concern evident in his voice, "Are you alright?"

He heard another hiccupping sob and, without waiting for her response, entered to find her collapsed on the floor, still in her pajamas, clutching an innocuous looking glass bottle in her hands, a bottle that caused the Doctor's breath to catch in his throat as he knelt beside her and take her in his arms, pulling her gently into his lap. He remembered well helping to smuggle that very bottle out of her mother's house, as a bit of a joke on Jackie on his part, out of a desire to have something of her mother with her on Rose's. She had taken Jackie's favourite perfume…and once her mother had figured it out, there had been a loud phone call to the mobile that now lay quiet in his companion's room.

Pulling his mind from the memories, he focused on Rose, stroking her back and murmuring softly, carding his fingers gently through her hair. Finally, her wild sobs slowed, then came to a rough, jerking stop, and she lay quiet against his chest.

"Sorry," she muttered a few moments later, voice still thick, "This's stupid."

"No, Rose," he said, shocked. "Not at all. It's completely normal. You're grieving, don't ever apologise for that." He pressed a kiss against her forehead, then stood carefully, helping her to her feet. "Let's get you something to eat." Ignoring that neither of them had changed, he led her to the kitchen, mindful of the fact that she had not eaten in some time, and low blood sugar always made grief a much harder thing to bear.

Rose set the perfume back in its place on the counter and allowed him to lead her out of the bathroom, her fumbling footsteps supported by his arm around her waist. He sat her down at the table and started preparing a meal; fresh hot waffles, jam and cream, and orange juice. He cooked quickly and efficiently, Rose watching him with a soft smile, still somewhat amazed what a good cook he was, and sure that at least half the credit belonged to the TARDIS.

He set a glass of juice on the table, smiling with gentle approval as she took it and sipped, then drank more deeply, then grabbed the plate piled with waffles, the small tureens holding the toppings, plates and cutlery, setting them all out before grabbing his own glass of juice and taking the chair beside her.

They ate slowly, chatting, even laughing about past adventures, although the Doctor made an effort not to bring up any on Earth.

After breakfast, Rose stood and started clearing the dishes.

"I'll get those, Rose," the Doctor said, but she shook her head.

"Nah, you cooked. Besides, it feels good to just do something…normal," she told him as she ran hot water into the sink. "Think I'll have a bath, once I'm done," she added. "Nice long hot soak sounds really good right now."

"You do that then. I'm gonna grab a shower." He stood and pressed a kiss into her hair and left the kitchen, asking the TARDIS to keep an eye on her and let him know if she got upset again.

~~~~~~

Rose slid into the large tub that was set into the floor of her bathroom, sighing with pleasure as the warm water closed over her sore, tired body and she started to relax. She lay in the water, allowing the heat to sooth her and she felt herself dropping off again. She shifted slightly on the edge of the tub so that her head nestled into the special depression there that the Doctor had asked the TARDIS to create after the first time she had fallen asleep while bathing.

She woke some time later to a soft tapping on the door, surprised to find that the water had cooled considerably. "Rose? You alright?" called the Doctor, concern evident in his voice.

"Yeah, just fell asleep," she called back.

"Okay, but I think you should get out now, you've been in there for two hours," he told her.

"Seriously? How on Earth did you keep yourself from coming in here before that?" she asked as she wrapped a towel around herself, then another around her hair, twisting it to keep it up.

"Oh…I…well…" the Doctor stumbled over his answer.

"You've been in here," she said, entering her room wrapped in the towel, a teasing smile stretching her lips, "ever since you got out of the shower, haven't you?"

"Ummm…yes?" he said, wincing slightly.

Rose just shrugged and moved past him to her wardrobe, reaching up to brush a soft kiss against his lips as she passed.

"So, what do you want to do today?" the Doctor asked, turning away as Rose dressed.

"Dunno, really. Just feel like a quiet day," Rose said, shrugging as she came around in front of him, dressed in a hoodie and sweats.

"Well, then, how about a movie?" suggested the Doctor, wrapping an arm casually around her shoulders.

"That sounds good," said Rose, smiling gratefully at the Doctor, glad that he was willing to just give her some time. She knew how hard it was for him not to be doing anything.

"What would you like to watch?" asked the Doctor as he opened the door to the theatre.

"Ummm…I dunno, really," Rose said slowly.

"Well, how about I grab a few and you can choose?" suggested the Doctor, and Rose nodded.

He made his way over to the shelves and quickly flicked through the ones the TARDIS had chosen to display. He made several selections and crossed back to Rose, who flicked through them and grinned before handing one back.

"Yes? Alright then," he said, grinning as he deposited the disc into the player and joined her on the couch, Rose curling into his shoulder, her legs going across his lap as he wrapped an arm around her.

The credits rolled across the screen, then a digitized baseball game started playing.

Rose and the Doctor laughed through the entirety of 'The Princess Bride', enjoying the movie and each other's company.

Over the next days, they spent their time together quietly, visiting peaceful planets, and just spending time together. Slowly, Rose's grief lessened, even as her relationship with the Doctor grew stronger. Their physical closeness had increased gradually, the two of them slowly growing more accustomed to their newfound freedom.

A week had passed since they had left Donna at her parents for Christmas, and the Doctor was looking for Rose, who had slipped away while he was showering. He found her in the library, curled up on the couch, staring at a picture of her mother that she had in a frame.

"Hello," he said quietly, dropping down beside her.

"Hi," she said softly. "I…I was thinking, we need to clean out the apartment," she said slowly.

"Are you sure, Rose?" he asked gently, and she nodded slowly.

"I want it done," she admitted. "I know it's going to be one of the hardest things; actually packing up all of her stuff…it's going to make it real."

"Mmmm," he agreed gently, burying his nose in her hair. "If you're ready," he said, pressing a gentle kiss to the nape of her neck.

"Yeah," she said, nodding. "I think it needs to be now." She turned in his arms and kissed him gently on the lips, the salt from her tears flavoring the kiss. He pulled back, then gave her one last peck.

"Well, then, no time like the present," he said, taking her hand and leading her to the console room. He quickly set the course for the living room of the old Tyler flat, and held Rose against his side as they bumped through the vortex.

When they stopped, Rose turned towards the door, shaking slightly as she contemplated what lay beyond it.

"We don't have to do this now," the Doctor told her gently. "I can bring you to the moment just after this one if you want. We're here just after we left the flat to go to Torchwood."

"So…somewhere out there, my mum's still here?" asked Rose, her voice quivering.

"I had to bring us to this point. We don't know if they've declared you dead or not, but it seems likely, so clearing out the apartment now would be a good idea."

"Yeah, I guess," Rose agreed. With shaking fingers, she drew her mobile from her pocket and passed it to him. "You should hold onto this, I think," she said, her tone showing the distrust she felt in herself.

"If that's what you want," he replied, tucking it into one of his dimensionally transcendental pockets.

"I think it's best," Rose replied, gripping his hand tightly and headed to the door.

Many hours, and many tears, later, the Doctor carried the last box into the TARDIS, stacking it in the store room she had thoughtfully provided for that purpose. He returned to the apartment and sat on the floor with Rose as she gazed around at the walls which had housed her entire life until he came along.

Finally, she sighed and pushed herself to her feet, and the two of them walked back into the TARDIS.

The Doctor headed to the console, planning to take them into the Vortex, when Rose spoke. "Can...can we go and see Sarah Jane?" she asked softly. She needed to see someone, and while she knew that these weren't the circumstances the motherly woman had been expecting when she gave the invitation, the idea of someone else to talk too was too strong a lure to resist.

"If that's what you want, of course we can," he replied, changing his actions and shifting spatially and slightly temporally, but his calculations arriving a few weeks after Christmas.

He turned to Rose and dropped a kiss on her forehead just as they heard knocking start on the TARDIS door. "Doctor?" came an anxious, familiar voice from outside, and, helping Rose to her feet, they made their way over and opened it.

"Hello, Sarah Jane," said the Doctor, grinning broadly at his friend. Rose smiled sadly, raising a hand in her direction.

"ROSE!" cried Sarah Jane, grabbing her in a tight hug. "I thought you were dead! The lists of the dead from the battle of Canary Wharf…I thought you were dead!"

Rose returned the hug in full force. Soon, she found herself seated at Sarah Jane's kitchen table, a cup of tea in her hands, a teacake fresh from the oven steaming slightly and giving off a beautiful aroma of cinnamon as she and the Doctor explained exactly what had happened.

Sarah Jane managed to react just the way Rose needed, with hugs and sympathy without being over the top, and she managed not to get even slightly upset over Rose and the Doctor's new situation.

An hour later heard the front door swinging open, and small feet running through the house. "MUM!" yelled a young male voice, and Sarah Jane smiled reflexively.

"In the kitchen, Luke," she called back, and a boy suddenly appeared in the doorway, staring curiously at visitors. "This is the Doctor and Rose," Sarah Jane told him, smiling. "This is my son, Luke. Did you have a good day at school?"

"It was fine," he replied. "I didn't make any huge social mistakes," he added, grinning brightly.

"We had a visit from some relatives of old friends of yours last week," Sarah Jane told the Doctor, smiling slightly. "The Slitheen, you remember?"

"How could we forget?" asked Rose, wincing slightly. "First time mum saw an alien…one that wasn't you, anyway."

"Yeah, it was, wasn't it?" the Doctor replied, nodding. "So, what were they up to this time?"

"Trying to destroy the world out of revenge for what you did," she explained, and then she and Luke burst into a back and forth recitation

By the time they were finished, the sun was starting to set.

"We should go," said Rose, standing quickly. "It was really nice seeing you, and it was nice to meet you, Luke," she told them, smiling, then turned to the Doctor, who offered his goodbyes as well.

"Oh, you don't need to leave yet, surely!" cried Sarah Jane.

"I'm really tired," Rose explained sadly, shrugging slightly. "It's been a long day."

The Doctor wrapped an arm around her waist and they left, calling their final goodbyes and promises to visit over their shoulders.

Once they were back in the Vortex, the Doctor turned to Rose. "Dinner and bed," he said, smiling gently, and led her down the corridor. And Rose, finally feeling as though the pieces of her heart might be starting to mend, followed.


	5. Chapter 5

Rose slept late the next day, and woke to find the Doctor sitting on the other side of her bed, a book in one hand, the other playing with her hair.

"Having fun?" she asked sleepily, turning her head into his now lightly massaging fingers. "Mmm..that's nice," she told him, smiling. Then she caught sight of the book held in his other hand. "Oi, that's mine," she cried, grabbing for it.

The Doctor held the book just out of reach. "Come on, you said I could read it first," Rose pouted at him. "And if you honestly believe I don't think you've already read book seven, you've got another think coming, but I'm reading THAT copy first," she told him, managing to grab it out of his hand.

"Alright, you got me," said the Doctor, threading his fingers into her hair and massaging her scalp more firmly. "Anyway, what do you want to do today?" he asked, smiling down at her then leaning to press a kiss against her lips.

"Mmmm…I want…chips. Can we go get chips?" she asked, grinning.

"Any ones in particular?"

"You remember that chippy in central London, our fist date?" she grinned up at him, and he nodded. "Those ones, please."

"Done," he replied, pressing another kiss to her forehead before pushing himself up off the bed and holding out a hand to help her up. "I'm going to go take a shower; you might want to too," he told her.

"Oi!" she exclaimed, tossing her pillow at him gently.

"I didn't mean it that way," he defended himself. "I just thought you might feel better for having one, that's all!"

Rose laughed at him, then pushed him gently out the door. "Meet you in the console room in half an hour?" she asked, and he nodded.

When Rose made it out to the console room forty minutes later, it was to be greeted by the Doctor wearing a brown suit with blue pinstripes rather than his normal blue one.

"That's…interesting," she told him, looking it up and down.

"Ah well…the other one was due for a wash, and since it takes at least a week to empty the pockets, even for the TARDIS, so…"

"Fine, fine," teased Rose. "It looks good on you, anyway," she told him, running one finger down his lapel as she stepped closer, going up on her toes to kiss him, an arm twining around his neck as his settled on her hips, his tongue running along her lower lip, then, when her mouth opened under his, slipping inside to taste her, even as hers slid around his, teasing his tongue and gums.

Finally, the Doctor pulled away, laughing as Rose's stomach grumbled loudly. "Come on, let's go feed you. We can always have fun shocking little old ladies."

Rose grinned wickedly up at him, her lips swollen, tongue peaking out between her teeth.

Three hours later, they were walking through London, living up to the Doctor's statement perfectly: snogging in public and drawing as many 'well I nevers' as possible from the elderly citizens of Rose's near future.

They were passing a large hospital when Rose saw a bright flash out of the corner of her eye.

"Did you see that?" she asked, twisting in the Doctor's hold to look straight at the building.

"No," he shook his head, following her line of sight just in time to catch the next flash.

"Aren't those…whad-ya-ma-call'ems…plasma thingies?" asked Rose, and the Doctor nodded, frowning slightly as he examined the building carefully.

"Plasma coils, yes…" the Doctor said, already pulling out his glasses as another flash went off, this one higher up the building. "Well, that doesn't look good…you up for some investigative work, Tyler?" he asked with a grin, and Rose looped her arm through his. "So, I'll just check myself in…" he started to outline a plan, but Rose immediately cut him off.

"Excuse me? Out of the two of us, who only has one heart? Who doesn't have to worry about their blood changing history…and who doesn't have a potentially lethal allergy to human medicines?" Until the last point, the Doctor had appeared ready to argue with her, but at that, he gave up, rolling his eyes but nodding.

"Okay, let's go back to the TARDIS, get ready," he said, sighing softly.

Half an hour later, the two of them stumbled through the doors of the Royal Hope Hospital Emergency Room. Rose was disheveled, flushed and sweaty, her hair tangled around her face as she stumbled, the Doctor's arm around her waist holding her up.

"I need some help here!" he called loudly.

Three hours later, the Doctor sat by Rose's bed, rather enjoying the part of 'dutiful boyfriend', if only because it meant that no one told him he wasn't allowed to hold her hand.

He had watched Rose being wheeled through the doors of the ER on a gurney, anxiety where none should be already sparking within him. Even though he knew that there was nothing wrong with her, he had still worried. He had worried that her biology had changed in some way he wasn't aware of, that some routine test would show something to be very strange, or that there really was something wrong with her that neither of them knew about.

While he worried, he filled in the reams of paperwork that the nurses kept giving him, becoming more and more convinced as time had passed that it was nothing more than a device to keep the patient's loved ones occupied and out from underfoot.

Finally, he had been sent up to the third floor, where Rose was ensconced in a bed, staring distastefully at the drip that was attached to the back of her hand. Her face had broken into a smile, however, when she saw him in the doorway. Her unattached hand had reached out for him, almost of its own accord, and he had quickly claimed it in his.

Which led directly to their current situation. The two of them were talking quietly, occasionally laughing, the Doctor tracing odd designs on Rose's palm.

The sun was setting, and the two of them were hanging out for nighttime to allow them to sneak off and investigate.

Rose managed to choke down some of the disgusting looking hospital food, the Doctor watching with a guilty expression on his face.

"I hate you," she muttered at him. "This is worse than the yak milk they made me drink when we were in Mongolia, and that was rancid." She didn't mention that they had been in Mongolia 800 years in the past, and she had been forced to play the part of a proper female, dressed in a cumbersome dress and hiding her face from the men, until the Doctor realized that the men of the camp were not planning on allowing him to walk away with her, no matter what he claimed about their marital status.

The Doctor grimaced at the memory. "That stuff was pretty bad," he admitted.

At 8pm, an announcement came over the PA system, stating that visiting hours were over and all visitors must leave the premises immediately. The Doctor dutifully stood, pressed one last, lingering kiss to Rose's lips, and left the ward to secrete himself away somewhere until the nightshift was in full swing.

Rose lay in the dark, waiting for him to come back. She found herself yawning once or twice, but forced herself to stay awake. The Doctor slipped back into the room after about half an hour, closing off her IV before handing her slippers and a dressing gown. He lead the way quietly out of the room, her hand clasped warmly in his.

They hunted around for over an hour but couldn't find anything. By that time, Rose was yawning hugely, and the Doctor tugged on her hand, pulling her gently against his side, and led the way back to the ward.

"Stay?" she asked softly as she slid into the bed. "I…I don' wanna be alone here, Doctor. Please?"

"Of course not," he agreed softly. "I'm not going anywhere, love. Sleep now." He pressed his lips gently to hers, then to her forehead as he moved to sit beside the bed where he could see into the corridor courtesy of a mirror, and disappear if a nurse came in.

He woke her the next morning not long before visiting hours were to start, not wanting her to wake and find him gone. "I've got to leave for a little bit, just til visiting hours start, then I'll be back."

"Okay," she replied, smiling. "Off ya get, then." She shooed him out the door and settled back against the pillows, staring around at the patently earth surroundings and wishing for nothing more than to be on the TARDIS a thousand light years away from her current location, in any direction. Even Clom would be better than Earth at the moment, but since being here had been her idea in the first place, she couldn't let the Doctor guess just how much she wanted to be anywhere but here.

Fifteen minutes later, he strolled back into the room, his hands held behind his back, a small smile on his lips as she looked at him, quirking an eyebrow at his expression.

"What?" she asked curiously, craning her neck to the side in an attempt to see what he was hiding.

"I got you something," he said with a soft smile, and Rose couldn't contain the excited grin that lit her face, a sight that pleased the Doctor no end. He waited another moment, then brought one from behind his back.

Rose grinned; it was just so him. A basket with grapes and several bananas with a single carnation laid on top. Not a rose; she seemed to remember telling him at some point that the play on her name had been done to death a long time ago, even Mickey knew not to get her roses, in fact that may have been what brought up the topic in the first place now that she thought about it.

"And…" he said slowly, drawing the other hand out, and Rose stifled a laugh. A tiny bear, small enough to sit in the palm of his hand, was grinning at her, and she bit her lip as she took it, tapping its nose gently before she grinned fully at him, her tongue caught between her teeth, then reached for him with one hand and he went to her, pressing his lips softly against hers.

"Thanks, I love it," she whispered, pecking him quickly on the cheek. He turned his head and captured her lips gently with his own, slowly but surely snogging her senseless.

A loud cough pulled them apart, and the nurse glared disapprovingly at the Doctor as she set Rose's breakfast down on the table. "I'll thank you, Mr. Smith, to keep your hands to yourself until your lady friend is healthy again," she said snippily. As she turned away, Rose rolled her eyes at the Doctor, who almost swallowed his tongue trying not to laugh.

They sat together, talking quietly, until morning rounds started.

A/N: OK, I need some opinions – how involved do you guys think we want Martha to be? I'll take all opinions that are given into account! Thanks for reading, please review! love xx Shezzi


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